Naturo fic: Friendly Advice
Title: Friendly Advice
Author: aviss
Pairing: Kakashi/Iruka
Rating: PG
Genre: romance
Summary: Kakashi needs advice for his date with Iruka. He should have asked anyone but Gai.
Word Count: ~3.000
Notes: This follows Not Just Gratitude, though it can be read on its own.
Friendly Advice
Kakashi strolled happily through the streets of Konoha, a spring in his step and a smile on his masked lips. It was going to be a good day.
It was Tuesday, he had the week off and the latest book of Magical Mahiro was released today. Oh, and he had a date on Friday, but he wasn't thinking of it or he would panic.
It was way too soon to panic.
He didn't mind being the only adult in the book store, or almost the only one, asking for two copies of his current favourite book. He had not expected it when he picked the first one by sheer chance, but it was a good read and he had to keep his inner child entertained. He usually went to a different kind of store for reading material for his inner adult.
"Can you please send this one to the Mission Desk and give it to Umino Iruka this afternoon?" he asked pleasantly, his uncovered eye twinkling with excitement as he wrote a short note and stuck it on the first page. Please read it in case we don't know what to talk about on Friday.
The girl looked at the note and blushed lightly, nodding her assent while she took his payment.
Waving goodbye merrily, Kakashi took his copy and headed to the memorial stone. He didn't even need to watch his steps as he marched, the path known by heart already. Kakashi was aware of what people might think of him, spending his mornings talking to ghosts of his past, but he didn't care.
It was peaceful at the memorial stone, and though he didn't need to be there to remember and honour his friends, he liked the place. Very few people came, except in times of tragedy when most of Konoha gathered there. Kakashi believed people shouldn't forget, ever during happy times, but it wasn't his place to tell anyone how to live their lives.
He stood there for a couple of hours, having silent conversations with Obito and Rin, and telling his sensei about Naruto's latest idiocy, before going back home and preparing a light lunch. He made enough for two, and went to the roof to enjoy his new book while he waited.
It was getting to the good part when he felt another presence approaching, and with a sigh Kakashi closed his book. Just on time.
He jumped out of the way of a huge fist coming straight at him, vaulting over and stopping a barrage of kicks with hands and feet. He retaliated, producing a clone to go over to the table and guard the food while he chased Gai all over the rooftop, exchanging blows.
They stopped after a few minutes, both of them breathing harshly and not having connected one single hit.
"I see you keep in shape, my Esteemed Rival!" Gai boomed happily, slapping Kakashi on the back and making him wince at the sheer volume of his voice. "I have returned to Challenge you--"
"Cut it, Gai," Kakashi said, moving back to where he had been sitting before and signalling for Gai to join him. "I've made lunch."
Gai beamed at him, his teeth glittering under the sun and Kakashi rolled his eyes. "My Esteemed Rival, you want us to keep our energy for a Challen--"
"Gai, do you want to eat or not?" Kakashi said looking pointedly at the plates. One of the advantages of being a genius was that everything he did was always the best. That included food.
Gai's smile dimmed a bit, his posture relaxing slightly. "Oh. You're a killjoy, Kakashi," he said, his voice still too loud but at least not deafening.
They sat down in opposite ends and Kakashi picked up his chopsticks to begin eating.
"Mask, Kakashi," Gai reminded him handing a strip of cloth that was resting on top of the table. Kakashi took it silently and replaced his mask with it at a lightning speed.
"Were you waiting for me in the Name of Friendship and--" Gai closed his mouth sharply at Kakashi's look, picking up his own chopsticks and delving into the food with a sigh of appreciation. "How did you know I would be back today?"
"I saw your mission report before they gave it to you."
"It said six weeks in Lightning Country, it has been just four," Gai pointed out and Kakashi shrugged.
"I know you."
They ate the food in companionable silence, the occasional noises of enjoyment from Gai the only sound filling the space between them. Kakashi grabbed another container from the ground next to the table and opened it when the main dish was finished, passing it to Gai.
"Lunch and dessert," Gai commented when they were done, licking the tip of his fingers to clean them of the remaining sugar. "What's happened?"
Kakashi stared at Gai who was staring back with a serious expression most people in Konoha would have not believed him capable of making. Most people thought Gai was weird and noisy and annoying, and well, he was weird and noisy and annoying. He was also too damn clever for his own good and very perceptive, a fact few people in Konoha were aware of.
Kakashi knew this, it was just that sometimes even he forgot.
He considered lying to buy some time, but that would defeat the purpose of cooking for Gai so they could have a chat. Gai's most serious moments came at a price.
"I have a date."
Gai frowned for a moment, studying Kakashi intently. "What about the bet?"
It had been Gai the one to tell Kakashi everything about the bet all those years ago, the moment he learned about it. It had appalled and horrified him when he had been told, and he had rushed to defend Kakashi's virtue. Before that Kakashi had believed Gai a weirdo who only wanted to bother him, it had been that moment when Kakashi accepted his idiotic challenges for the first time, and though he didn't consider Gai a rival, he considered him a friend.
One of few living ones he still had.
"Over. For good this time."
At this Gai smiled, a real blinding smile with no pose behind it. "About time."
They looked at each other in silence for a few heartbeats until Gai finally laughed. "I seem to have missed some things while on my mission, tell me how it happened!"
Gai listened intently while Kakashi recounted everything, from the night at the restaurant to his attempts to get Iruka to go out with him.
"Iruka-sensei is a good man," Gai said when Kakashi finished telling him. "I'm happy for you, Kakashi."
Kakashi smiled. "Yes, and I think I really like him. That's the reason I don't want to screw up."
Gai looked at him considering and finally chuckled. "You've no idea how to date anyone."
Kakashi glared, offended. "Of course I do! You just have to get them in the mood to go home with you and impress them with your prowess in bed."
Gai's laugh could be heard in the mission room, and probably in Suna's mission room as well. Kakashi glared mutinously at him until he calmed down. "Kakashi, I don't think Iruka-sensei will act like the character in one of your porn books."
"As if you know more than I do! You've been single as long as I have!" Which probably meant Gai wasn't the best person to give him advice, and Kakashi wondered what in seven hells he had been thinking to even consider it.
Gai smiled mysteriously at him. "Just because nobody knows about it, my friend, doesn't mean I don't have a special someone." Kakashi arched up and eyebrow at him. "I'm Youthful and Love is the Most Special--"
Kakashi laughed. "Cut it out, if you speak to them like that I'm surprised you have anyone."
"I don't. At least not all the time." Gai's smile melted, his expression serious again. "But it's not me we're talking about here. You only have one chance, am I right? So let's make sure you succeed."
Kakashi sighed. He couldn't believe he was going to do this. "What do you suggest?"
…
Iruka looked at the time, five minutes to seven, and wondered if he was hoping for Kakashi to be late and be done with all the date non-sense or actually eager for him to arrive.
He had been having those contradictory feelings since Tuesday afternoon, when the girl from the bookshop delivered the book and he read the note attached. The fact that he still felt Kakashi was endearing for his taste in non pornographic books was a bit disturbing.
Still, he had devoured the book, making mental notes in some chapters to comment them with Kakashi. And now he was waiting for him to arrive.
There was a knock on his door at seven sharp, and Iruka smothered the smile that threatened to curl his lips. "Kakashi-san," he said opening the door and looking appraisingly at Kakashi. He wasn't wearing his flak vest or hitai-ate, an eye-patch covering his sharingan. Those were the only concessions to the fact that they were off work: he was wearing his uniform and masked vest top and the weapons pouch. One never knew when they could run into trouble. "You're on time."
Kakashi smiled under his mask. "Iruka-sensei, you look especially lovely today," he said and Iruka felt his eyebrows trying to climb up his forehead. He flushed, his cheeks heating in embarrassment. "Shall we?"
Iruka shook his head to clear it and nodded, stepping out into the hallway and setting his traps. He noticed how Kakashi averted his eye while he did this, granting him the privacy to secure his home. He liked that. "Where are we going?" he asked, his back turned to Kakashi.
"I've made a reservation in a restaurant which has been recommended to me for their Romantic Ambiance," Kakashi said seriously, and Iruka could swear he heard the capitals in the words. When he turned to look at Kakashi there was a flower in his hand.
That was it, Iruka looked at Kakashi's eager face and the flower in his hand and burst out laughing. He was being courted like a girl.
"Kakashi, I don't think--" he started and saw how Kakashi turned to glare at the far side of the corridor.
Iruka followed his look and saw a figure skulking there. It disappeared before Iruka could recognize it, but it wasn't very difficult to know who it had been.
"This is not going to work, Iruka-sensei," Kakashi said, cutting him off. "Change of plans." Kakashi approached Iruka and put his hands on his shoulders, teleporting them away before Iruka had the chance to move away.
He pushed Kakashi way the moment their new surrounding came into sharp focus. They were outside, in a grassy expanse with some sakura trees casting shadow and a pond. There was a picnic hamper under one of the trees, a blanket already strewn on the grass.
"I'm sorry sensei; I shouldn't have listened to Gai to begin with."
Iruka blinked at him, surprised by the confession, and then chuckled. "No. Definitely don't listen to Gai's dating advice. He's going out with Shizune, and for what she tells me, he's insane. He's lucky she likes the weird ones."
He looked around. The garden, if it was indeed a garden, was huge and beautiful. There weren't only sakura trees, on both sides of the pond lush flower beds showed vibrant colours, and there was a rose bush close by. The place was lovely, Iruka had never seen one like that in Konoha.
"Where are we, Kakashi?" He asked, curious.
"This is my family home. I don't live here, since it's far from the centre and too big for just one person," Kakashi explained. He sat down on the blanket and opened the hamper, signalling for Iruka to do the same. "But it has the most amazing garden, and I love coming here when I need some time for myself."
Iruka sat down next to Kakashi, taking care to leave some space between the two of them. "It's gorgeous," he breathed, looking at the afternoon sun reflected on the pond.
"I've made some things to eat, and I also brought some drinks. I hope you like plum wine, Sensei," Kakashi said, his voice a bit hesitant. It was unusual for Iruka to hear him like this, when Kakashi always appeared so certain of himself in the mission room.
He imagined Kakashi might be feeling out of his depth. With the bet and everything else that had been going on, Iruka didn't believe Kakashi had much dating experience.
"That's fine," Iruka said, accepting the glass Kakashi handed him.
They drank the first cup in silence, Iruka watching the scenery and Kakashi watching Iruka. It really was a beautiful place, and the wine was very good, but Iruka was beginning to feel uncomfortable.
He turned to look at Kakashi, and saw that he had pulled down his mask and replaced it with a handkerchief. His face was still covered, but he was drinking his wine without problems.
"I have already seen you, you know," Iruka said, and cursed himself immediately when he saw the tiny wince Kakashi didn't manage to cover. Probably remembering the bet and the reason he had to show his face wasn't pleasant for him.
"You and half of Konoha," Kakashi said bitterly. "They were talking about it for an entire week. Luckily, they've left me alone now."
"I'm glad to hear."
Silence fell again between them, and Iruka grabbed a pair of chopstick and picked some food just to have something to do with his hands. The moment he tried the food, though, he was unable to contain a tiny moan of pleasure. It was delicious
"Please tell me you haven't made all of this," Iruka said after swallowing it, already choosing the next dish to try.
"I have."
Iruka looked at him with narrowed eyes. "How is it fair that you are the best shinobi in Konoha, rich, handsome and also cook this well? Haven't you considered leaving something for us mere mortals?" he asked in mock outrage.
Kakashi laughed, the last bit of tension disappearing. "I'm a genius, I can't help it."
They ate the rest of the food in the middle of relaxed conversation, the sun setting around them as they discussed every topic that crossed their minds. Kakashi had various opinions about mostly everything, and he seemed well informed and read. He was also fun when he told of his adventures, his self-depreciating style of narration making it impossible for Iruka to stop laughing. And he was a good listener, giving Iruka all his attention when he was the one speaking.
It was so not fair.
And Iruka was in so much trouble.
He was having fun. Having fun in a way he didn't remember in a long time. He didn't want to like Kakashi, but he had to admit there was nothing to do at that point.
"And I just couldn't believe it when Mokuro revealed he had Mahiro's brother under his control, and that he had never betrayed his sister," Iruka said, gesturing wildly with his hands, the wine inside the glass he was holding sloshing precariously. "It was so heartbreaking."
Kakashi drained his cup and deposited it on the blanket. "I know. I couldn't sleep one minute that night; I had to finish reading the book."
Iruka smiled at him, noticing for the first time he could barely see Kakashi's outline. Night had fallen around them and they had been eating and drinking and talking for hours. What was worse, Iruka didn't want for the date to be over.
He was in trouble.
"The next one comes out in two months. I don't know how I'm going to survive!" he sighed dramatically and Kakashi chuckled.
"I know. We'll manage, Sensei."
"Why me, Kakashi?" Iruka asked out of the blue. It was the question he had been wondering since the beginning.
Gratitude was all good, but this went beyond that. Kakashi couldn't be interested in him just because Iruka stood up for him. It was insane.
"I don't know," Kakashi said seriously, obviously not having trouble following Iruka's thoughts. "That day you defended me, and it made me reconsider my opinion of you. I just want to know you better."
Iruka looked at him, focusing on what little he could see of his expression in the dim light.
"So you're not going to say you're madly in love with me?"
Kakashi laughed. "No. I like you, Iruka, but I don't know you that much. I would like to be, though. You're the first person I wouldn't have to wonder about his motivations for liking me."
"You don't know if I like you," Iruka said, smiling. He realized belatedly he was flirting with Kakashi.
"Not even after tonight?" Kakashi asked, a smile in his voice.
"Well, after tonight, I might like you a bit."
Kakashi leaned forward, his face approaching Iruka's. "So you'll agree to go out with me again?"
Iruka leaned forward as well, his face stopping scant inches from Kakashi's. ""Yes."
They stared at each other like that for a minute.
"Are you going to kiss me, Kakashi?" Iruka asked when he saw there wasn't going to be any change in their positions.
"Do you want me to?" Kakashi asked, and he didn't sound smooth or cocky. He sounded uncertain.
Iruka didn't bother answering the question, he just pulled the handkerchief up and closed the distance between them. It was a sweet and almost chaste kiss, just the press of lips against lips for barely a couple of seconds, and then Iruka pulled back. Kakashi blinked at him, his eye arching in a happy crescent.
He leaned forward again, and this time the kiss was everything but chaste. Iruka opened his mouth under Kakashi's and let his tongue in to taste and explore, clutching at Kakashi's shoulders and kissing back with the same eagerness. They pulled apart breathlessly, smiling at each other.
"I have to work in the morning, Kakashi," Iruka said, standing up from the blanket. "I hate to cut this night short, but I will be leaving now."
"Do you want me to accompany you?" Kakashi offered, standing up as well.
"No. You don't need to. And besides, if you take me home, you won't be able to kiss me goodnight."
Kakashi took a step toward him and did exactly that.
"Goodnight Sensei."
"Goodnight Kakashi."
…
Author: aviss
Pairing: Kakashi/Iruka
Rating: PG
Genre: romance
Summary: Kakashi needs advice for his date with Iruka. He should have asked anyone but Gai.
Word Count: ~3.000
Notes: This follows Not Just Gratitude, though it can be read on its own.
Friendly Advice
Kakashi strolled happily through the streets of Konoha, a spring in his step and a smile on his masked lips. It was going to be a good day.
It was Tuesday, he had the week off and the latest book of Magical Mahiro was released today. Oh, and he had a date on Friday, but he wasn't thinking of it or he would panic.
It was way too soon to panic.
He didn't mind being the only adult in the book store, or almost the only one, asking for two copies of his current favourite book. He had not expected it when he picked the first one by sheer chance, but it was a good read and he had to keep his inner child entertained. He usually went to a different kind of store for reading material for his inner adult.
"Can you please send this one to the Mission Desk and give it to Umino Iruka this afternoon?" he asked pleasantly, his uncovered eye twinkling with excitement as he wrote a short note and stuck it on the first page. Please read it in case we don't know what to talk about on Friday.
The girl looked at the note and blushed lightly, nodding her assent while she took his payment.
Waving goodbye merrily, Kakashi took his copy and headed to the memorial stone. He didn't even need to watch his steps as he marched, the path known by heart already. Kakashi was aware of what people might think of him, spending his mornings talking to ghosts of his past, but he didn't care.
It was peaceful at the memorial stone, and though he didn't need to be there to remember and honour his friends, he liked the place. Very few people came, except in times of tragedy when most of Konoha gathered there. Kakashi believed people shouldn't forget, ever during happy times, but it wasn't his place to tell anyone how to live their lives.
He stood there for a couple of hours, having silent conversations with Obito and Rin, and telling his sensei about Naruto's latest idiocy, before going back home and preparing a light lunch. He made enough for two, and went to the roof to enjoy his new book while he waited.
It was getting to the good part when he felt another presence approaching, and with a sigh Kakashi closed his book. Just on time.
He jumped out of the way of a huge fist coming straight at him, vaulting over and stopping a barrage of kicks with hands and feet. He retaliated, producing a clone to go over to the table and guard the food while he chased Gai all over the rooftop, exchanging blows.
They stopped after a few minutes, both of them breathing harshly and not having connected one single hit.
"I see you keep in shape, my Esteemed Rival!" Gai boomed happily, slapping Kakashi on the back and making him wince at the sheer volume of his voice. "I have returned to Challenge you--"
"Cut it, Gai," Kakashi said, moving back to where he had been sitting before and signalling for Gai to join him. "I've made lunch."
Gai beamed at him, his teeth glittering under the sun and Kakashi rolled his eyes. "My Esteemed Rival, you want us to keep our energy for a Challen--"
"Gai, do you want to eat or not?" Kakashi said looking pointedly at the plates. One of the advantages of being a genius was that everything he did was always the best. That included food.
Gai's smile dimmed a bit, his posture relaxing slightly. "Oh. You're a killjoy, Kakashi," he said, his voice still too loud but at least not deafening.
They sat down in opposite ends and Kakashi picked up his chopsticks to begin eating.
"Mask, Kakashi," Gai reminded him handing a strip of cloth that was resting on top of the table. Kakashi took it silently and replaced his mask with it at a lightning speed.
"Were you waiting for me in the Name of Friendship and--" Gai closed his mouth sharply at Kakashi's look, picking up his own chopsticks and delving into the food with a sigh of appreciation. "How did you know I would be back today?"
"I saw your mission report before they gave it to you."
"It said six weeks in Lightning Country, it has been just four," Gai pointed out and Kakashi shrugged.
"I know you."
They ate the food in companionable silence, the occasional noises of enjoyment from Gai the only sound filling the space between them. Kakashi grabbed another container from the ground next to the table and opened it when the main dish was finished, passing it to Gai.
"Lunch and dessert," Gai commented when they were done, licking the tip of his fingers to clean them of the remaining sugar. "What's happened?"
Kakashi stared at Gai who was staring back with a serious expression most people in Konoha would have not believed him capable of making. Most people thought Gai was weird and noisy and annoying, and well, he was weird and noisy and annoying. He was also too damn clever for his own good and very perceptive, a fact few people in Konoha were aware of.
Kakashi knew this, it was just that sometimes even he forgot.
He considered lying to buy some time, but that would defeat the purpose of cooking for Gai so they could have a chat. Gai's most serious moments came at a price.
"I have a date."
Gai frowned for a moment, studying Kakashi intently. "What about the bet?"
It had been Gai the one to tell Kakashi everything about the bet all those years ago, the moment he learned about it. It had appalled and horrified him when he had been told, and he had rushed to defend Kakashi's virtue. Before that Kakashi had believed Gai a weirdo who only wanted to bother him, it had been that moment when Kakashi accepted his idiotic challenges for the first time, and though he didn't consider Gai a rival, he considered him a friend.
One of few living ones he still had.
"Over. For good this time."
At this Gai smiled, a real blinding smile with no pose behind it. "About time."
They looked at each other in silence for a few heartbeats until Gai finally laughed. "I seem to have missed some things while on my mission, tell me how it happened!"
Gai listened intently while Kakashi recounted everything, from the night at the restaurant to his attempts to get Iruka to go out with him.
"Iruka-sensei is a good man," Gai said when Kakashi finished telling him. "I'm happy for you, Kakashi."
Kakashi smiled. "Yes, and I think I really like him. That's the reason I don't want to screw up."
Gai looked at him considering and finally chuckled. "You've no idea how to date anyone."
Kakashi glared, offended. "Of course I do! You just have to get them in the mood to go home with you and impress them with your prowess in bed."
Gai's laugh could be heard in the mission room, and probably in Suna's mission room as well. Kakashi glared mutinously at him until he calmed down. "Kakashi, I don't think Iruka-sensei will act like the character in one of your porn books."
"As if you know more than I do! You've been single as long as I have!" Which probably meant Gai wasn't the best person to give him advice, and Kakashi wondered what in seven hells he had been thinking to even consider it.
Gai smiled mysteriously at him. "Just because nobody knows about it, my friend, doesn't mean I don't have a special someone." Kakashi arched up and eyebrow at him. "I'm Youthful and Love is the Most Special--"
Kakashi laughed. "Cut it out, if you speak to them like that I'm surprised you have anyone."
"I don't. At least not all the time." Gai's smile melted, his expression serious again. "But it's not me we're talking about here. You only have one chance, am I right? So let's make sure you succeed."
Kakashi sighed. He couldn't believe he was going to do this. "What do you suggest?"
…
Iruka looked at the time, five minutes to seven, and wondered if he was hoping for Kakashi to be late and be done with all the date non-sense or actually eager for him to arrive.
He had been having those contradictory feelings since Tuesday afternoon, when the girl from the bookshop delivered the book and he read the note attached. The fact that he still felt Kakashi was endearing for his taste in non pornographic books was a bit disturbing.
Still, he had devoured the book, making mental notes in some chapters to comment them with Kakashi. And now he was waiting for him to arrive.
There was a knock on his door at seven sharp, and Iruka smothered the smile that threatened to curl his lips. "Kakashi-san," he said opening the door and looking appraisingly at Kakashi. He wasn't wearing his flak vest or hitai-ate, an eye-patch covering his sharingan. Those were the only concessions to the fact that they were off work: he was wearing his uniform and masked vest top and the weapons pouch. One never knew when they could run into trouble. "You're on time."
Kakashi smiled under his mask. "Iruka-sensei, you look especially lovely today," he said and Iruka felt his eyebrows trying to climb up his forehead. He flushed, his cheeks heating in embarrassment. "Shall we?"
Iruka shook his head to clear it and nodded, stepping out into the hallway and setting his traps. He noticed how Kakashi averted his eye while he did this, granting him the privacy to secure his home. He liked that. "Where are we going?" he asked, his back turned to Kakashi.
"I've made a reservation in a restaurant which has been recommended to me for their Romantic Ambiance," Kakashi said seriously, and Iruka could swear he heard the capitals in the words. When he turned to look at Kakashi there was a flower in his hand.
That was it, Iruka looked at Kakashi's eager face and the flower in his hand and burst out laughing. He was being courted like a girl.
"Kakashi, I don't think--" he started and saw how Kakashi turned to glare at the far side of the corridor.
Iruka followed his look and saw a figure skulking there. It disappeared before Iruka could recognize it, but it wasn't very difficult to know who it had been.
"This is not going to work, Iruka-sensei," Kakashi said, cutting him off. "Change of plans." Kakashi approached Iruka and put his hands on his shoulders, teleporting them away before Iruka had the chance to move away.
He pushed Kakashi way the moment their new surrounding came into sharp focus. They were outside, in a grassy expanse with some sakura trees casting shadow and a pond. There was a picnic hamper under one of the trees, a blanket already strewn on the grass.
"I'm sorry sensei; I shouldn't have listened to Gai to begin with."
Iruka blinked at him, surprised by the confession, and then chuckled. "No. Definitely don't listen to Gai's dating advice. He's going out with Shizune, and for what she tells me, he's insane. He's lucky she likes the weird ones."
He looked around. The garden, if it was indeed a garden, was huge and beautiful. There weren't only sakura trees, on both sides of the pond lush flower beds showed vibrant colours, and there was a rose bush close by. The place was lovely, Iruka had never seen one like that in Konoha.
"Where are we, Kakashi?" He asked, curious.
"This is my family home. I don't live here, since it's far from the centre and too big for just one person," Kakashi explained. He sat down on the blanket and opened the hamper, signalling for Iruka to do the same. "But it has the most amazing garden, and I love coming here when I need some time for myself."
Iruka sat down next to Kakashi, taking care to leave some space between the two of them. "It's gorgeous," he breathed, looking at the afternoon sun reflected on the pond.
"I've made some things to eat, and I also brought some drinks. I hope you like plum wine, Sensei," Kakashi said, his voice a bit hesitant. It was unusual for Iruka to hear him like this, when Kakashi always appeared so certain of himself in the mission room.
He imagined Kakashi might be feeling out of his depth. With the bet and everything else that had been going on, Iruka didn't believe Kakashi had much dating experience.
"That's fine," Iruka said, accepting the glass Kakashi handed him.
They drank the first cup in silence, Iruka watching the scenery and Kakashi watching Iruka. It really was a beautiful place, and the wine was very good, but Iruka was beginning to feel uncomfortable.
He turned to look at Kakashi, and saw that he had pulled down his mask and replaced it with a handkerchief. His face was still covered, but he was drinking his wine without problems.
"I have already seen you, you know," Iruka said, and cursed himself immediately when he saw the tiny wince Kakashi didn't manage to cover. Probably remembering the bet and the reason he had to show his face wasn't pleasant for him.
"You and half of Konoha," Kakashi said bitterly. "They were talking about it for an entire week. Luckily, they've left me alone now."
"I'm glad to hear."
Silence fell again between them, and Iruka grabbed a pair of chopstick and picked some food just to have something to do with his hands. The moment he tried the food, though, he was unable to contain a tiny moan of pleasure. It was delicious
"Please tell me you haven't made all of this," Iruka said after swallowing it, already choosing the next dish to try.
"I have."
Iruka looked at him with narrowed eyes. "How is it fair that you are the best shinobi in Konoha, rich, handsome and also cook this well? Haven't you considered leaving something for us mere mortals?" he asked in mock outrage.
Kakashi laughed, the last bit of tension disappearing. "I'm a genius, I can't help it."
They ate the rest of the food in the middle of relaxed conversation, the sun setting around them as they discussed every topic that crossed their minds. Kakashi had various opinions about mostly everything, and he seemed well informed and read. He was also fun when he told of his adventures, his self-depreciating style of narration making it impossible for Iruka to stop laughing. And he was a good listener, giving Iruka all his attention when he was the one speaking.
It was so not fair.
And Iruka was in so much trouble.
He was having fun. Having fun in a way he didn't remember in a long time. He didn't want to like Kakashi, but he had to admit there was nothing to do at that point.
"And I just couldn't believe it when Mokuro revealed he had Mahiro's brother under his control, and that he had never betrayed his sister," Iruka said, gesturing wildly with his hands, the wine inside the glass he was holding sloshing precariously. "It was so heartbreaking."
Kakashi drained his cup and deposited it on the blanket. "I know. I couldn't sleep one minute that night; I had to finish reading the book."
Iruka smiled at him, noticing for the first time he could barely see Kakashi's outline. Night had fallen around them and they had been eating and drinking and talking for hours. What was worse, Iruka didn't want for the date to be over.
He was in trouble.
"The next one comes out in two months. I don't know how I'm going to survive!" he sighed dramatically and Kakashi chuckled.
"I know. We'll manage, Sensei."
"Why me, Kakashi?" Iruka asked out of the blue. It was the question he had been wondering since the beginning.
Gratitude was all good, but this went beyond that. Kakashi couldn't be interested in him just because Iruka stood up for him. It was insane.
"I don't know," Kakashi said seriously, obviously not having trouble following Iruka's thoughts. "That day you defended me, and it made me reconsider my opinion of you. I just want to know you better."
Iruka looked at him, focusing on what little he could see of his expression in the dim light.
"So you're not going to say you're madly in love with me?"
Kakashi laughed. "No. I like you, Iruka, but I don't know you that much. I would like to be, though. You're the first person I wouldn't have to wonder about his motivations for liking me."
"You don't know if I like you," Iruka said, smiling. He realized belatedly he was flirting with Kakashi.
"Not even after tonight?" Kakashi asked, a smile in his voice.
"Well, after tonight, I might like you a bit."
Kakashi leaned forward, his face approaching Iruka's. "So you'll agree to go out with me again?"
Iruka leaned forward as well, his face stopping scant inches from Kakashi's. ""Yes."
They stared at each other like that for a minute.
"Are you going to kiss me, Kakashi?" Iruka asked when he saw there wasn't going to be any change in their positions.
"Do you want me to?" Kakashi asked, and he didn't sound smooth or cocky. He sounded uncertain.
Iruka didn't bother answering the question, he just pulled the handkerchief up and closed the distance between them. It was a sweet and almost chaste kiss, just the press of lips against lips for barely a couple of seconds, and then Iruka pulled back. Kakashi blinked at him, his eye arching in a happy crescent.
He leaned forward again, and this time the kiss was everything but chaste. Iruka opened his mouth under Kakashi's and let his tongue in to taste and explore, clutching at Kakashi's shoulders and kissing back with the same eagerness. They pulled apart breathlessly, smiling at each other.
"I have to work in the morning, Kakashi," Iruka said, standing up from the blanket. "I hate to cut this night short, but I will be leaving now."
"Do you want me to accompany you?" Kakashi offered, standing up as well.
"No. You don't need to. And besides, if you take me home, you won't be able to kiss me goodnight."
Kakashi took a step toward him and did exactly that.
"Goodnight Sensei."
"Goodnight Kakashi."
…